When Xiao Yao heard Ling Tian's words, she looked at the black bead in his hands and said in surprise: "Junior Brother, are you sure?"
Ling Tian nodded while saying: "Of course."
Xiao Yao wanted to say something, but when she saw him insisting on taking the bead, she backed away from what she was going to say and nodded lightly.
After that, Ling Tian bid farewell to Xiao Yao and Kong Hao Ran and left the hall.
After leaving, Ling Tian found Dan Wen, who had reserved a room for him next to his own.
Ling Tian thanked him and quickly entered the room.
The room was old with bloodstains everywhere, but this didn't bother Ling Tian, and he sat studying the black bead.
"There must be something special about you if I can sense you watching me," Ling Tian said while examining the bead carefully.
He first sent Qi into the bead, but it didn't respond. After realizing that, he scratched his finger with the sword and smeared the bead with his blood, but it didn't respond.
After a period of random experiments, Ling Tian gave up and said gloomily: "Since you were watching me, you have a spirit, so why don't you tell me how to use you?"
Ling Tian expected to get a response somehow, but all he got was silence.
When Ling Tian realized the bead was ignoring him, he became angry and set it aside while muttering: "Fine, you want to play hard to get? Let's see if you'll ever see sunlight again."
After setting the bead aside, Ling Tian began training in the Swan Movement Technique.
A week quickly passed.
On the first day, Xiao Yao ordered everyone to repair and clean the stronghold. After that was done, she formed teams of five people and sent them to find anyone they could find.
Of course, searching for treasures along the way was equally important.
During this week, Ling Tian wasn't idle either, as he found many herbs. Although none of them were of the quality of the Fire Plum Fruit, quantity compensated for quality because he began to feel his training was progressing, even if slowly.
In his room, Ling Tian slowly opened his eyes and looked at the remaining quantity of herbs, sighing with regret: "It's truly unfortunate to consume these herbs without refining them, but there's no other choice because I don't know any pill recipes except Qi Replenishing Pills."
"This won't work. I must find a way to get more recipes. This is really funny—the ordinary alchemist has the recipe without herbs, but I only have the herbs," Ling Tian thought mockingly as he left his room.
After a while, Ling Tian arrived at the gate, which was now repaired, which was the meeting place for his team members.
When he arrived, a young girl with an aura of the fifth level of Qi Condensation said happily: "Brother Ling, you've come!"
Ling Tian nodded to the girl, who was called Fu Zheng Lan, and said apologetically: "Sorry for being late."
"No need to apologize, Junior Brother. You must have lost yourself in cultivation again," Fu Zheng Lan said with a smile on her face.
Ling Tian nodded to her while thinking: "I wish all team members were as kind as her."
Just as Ling Tian thought this, he heard an angry voice saying: "You always have the same excuses. Can you focus for once?"
Ling Tian turned to the owner of the voice, who was the team leader Mo Chen, a member of Lin Hua City's guards with seventh-level Qi Condensation cultivation.
When Ling Tian heard his words, he thought with annoyance: "Although he's a person with a fiery temper, he's fair in distributing herbs, but even after a week, I still haven't gotten used to this temper of his."
Ling Tian nodded to Mo Chen as a sign of understanding, and when Mo Chen saw Ling Tian's nod, he didn't want to make the situation difficult for him, so he turned to Kong Jian, who was at the sixth level of Qi Condensation, and said: "Well, now that everyone's gathered, you can tell me what you have."
When Ling Tian heard Mo Chen's words, he thought calmly: "What's important enough that Kong Jian couldn't tell Mo Chen privately?"
Kong Jian said cautiously: "Team Leader, do you remember when I chased an injured spiritual beast while you were dealing with the corpse of the One-Eyed Fire Bear that was at the fifth level?"
Mo Chen nodded while remembering his fight with the One-Eyed Fire Bear. Although it was at the fifth level, its fire bloodline made few beasts of the same level face it.
Kong Jian continued his words enthusiastically: "After I chased that beast, it led me inside a cave, and there I found a Purple Moon Tree about to bear fruit."
When Ling Tian and the rest of the group heard this, they were shocked because Purple Moon Tree fruits could increase the cultivation of anyone below the seventh level of Qi Condensation by one level, and even grant a seventh-level cultivator some progress in their cultivation.
After Ling Tian realized this, he knew why Kong Jian didn't dare say this when alone with Mo Chen—because he was afraid Mo Chen would silence him to keep the secret.
But suddenly, Ling Tian thought of something and said: "Then why didn't you take it for yourself? I don't believe there's someone who would want to share such a treasure with others."
When everyone heard Ling Tian's words, they realized something was wrong. When Kong Jian wanted to explain, Han Yu, the person who had been silent the whole time, said mockingly: "Isn't this obvious? A treasure like this must have a powerful beast guarding it."
When Ling Tian heard his words, he thought it was logical, and even Kong Jian admitted: "Indeed, there's a Three Poison Snake at the peak of the sixth level guarding the place."
When Ling Tian heard Kong Jian's words, he nodded, and now he knew why he didn't dare take the treasure. But he glanced at Mo Chen, who had a strange look in his eyes, but it vanished in the blink of an eye.
But suddenly, Han Yu said questioningly: "Then why didn't you go to Kong Hao Ran or any of your senior brothers?"
When everyone heard his words, they realized he was right and looked at Kong Jian, waiting for an explanation.
Indeed, Kong Jian said with self-mockery: "I don't blame you because you're just a free cultivator, but in the Kong Clan, it doesn't matter if you were the one who found and reported it. As long as you didn't participate in obtaining the treasure, you won't get anything. So in your opinion, if I told Senior Brother Hao Ran, do you think he needs anyone's help?"
After Kong Jian said this, all their doubts were resolved, and even Ling Tian felt some pity.
After hearing Kong Jian's explanation, Mo Chen said reassuringly: "Don't worry, Brother Kong. As long as we get the Purple Moon fruits, I'll ensure we share them equally."